The release of India's first satellite-tagged Ganges soft-shell turtle in Kaziranga National Park is a laudable initiative to strengthen conservation of endangered species in Assam. The initiative coinciding with Endangered Species Day on Friday and launched after the rare sighting of a gharIAL in the Burapahar range of the national park last month signals sustained efforts for wildlife conservation, scripting new conservation success stories in the state. Such milestones collectively strengthen Assam's resolve to protect and conserve endangered species and secure their fragile habitat. The reported sighting of an endangered Hoolock Gibbon using an artificial canopy bridge with a safety net for crossing over railway lines in the Hollongapar Gibbon Sanctuary in the state has triggered great enthusiasm among wildlife experts. The Wildlife Institute of India (WII) described it as the first confirmed and documented use of the canopy bridge by the endangered primate - India's only ape - for crossing over the railway lines that pass through the sanctuary. The Northeast Frontier Railways had built the canopy bridge for the mitigation of the threats to Gibbons of the sanctuary posed by the electrification of the railway track between Lumding and Dibrugarh. The WII says that there is a ray of hope for mitigating the impacts of linear infrastructure on India's only ape but sounds the caution that long-term solutions involving careful infrastructure planning, eco-conscious location and creating reforested corridors to connect isolated populations remain critical for the long-term survival of exclusively arboreal and threatened species like gibbons. Involvement of the Assam Forest Department in the design, deployment and continuous monitoring of the canopy bridge speaks volumes about the state's commitment to balance infrastructure development with wildlife conservation. The sighting of the gharial in the Burapahar range, reportedly by a team of forest staff of Kaziranga National Park on April 26, and the subsequent sighting by a tourist guide in the same range on May 8 have raised fresh conservation hopes, as the critically endangered wildlife species was believed to have disappeared from rivers in the state. These developments reinforce the importance of scientific studies initiated by wildlife experts getting adequate funding and logistical support from government and non-government agencies. Strengthening the wildlife monitoring system in Kaziranga National Park and across all wildlife habitats in the state is also equally important to sustain wildlife research, conservation, and mitigation efforts, especially as linear infrastructure projects pushed in ecologically important areas for strategic needs continue to pose significant threats to endangered species. Even as these milestones help spread awareness on the conservation of the endangered and threatened wildlife heritage of the state, relentless, persistent and escalating human-wildlife conflict poses serious conservation threats to wild elephants, leopards and other endangered and vulnerable species and remains a grave conservation concern. As these conflicts lead to direct negative interaction between wildlife and humans, placing affected populations at the centre of mitigation measures is essential for any sustainable solution for the conservation of endangered species, protecting life and properties. Rising incidents of herds of wild elephants frequently visiting human habitation in search of food and shelter lay bare the harsh realities of humans encroaching on the natural migratory corridors of elephants. A permanent solution to the problem is still eluding us as the landscape-level mitigation measures, which were suggested by wildlife experts, remain largely on paper. Interventions are still occurring in sporadic and isolated pockets. Encroachment of forest areas has precipitated the crisis, and the state government continuing the eviction operations to reclaim all encroached forest lands is crucial for not just sustaining the conservation initiatives but also strengthening preventive measures to ensure that the natural habitat of all endangered and vulnerable species remains secure forever. The infrastructure projects involving the diversion of forest areas must be subjected to rigorous scrutiny by wildlife experts to ensure that stronger and scientifically grounded mitigation measures are recommended. Mere recommendation of the mitigation measures will not ensure protection of endangered species from imminent extinction threats unless a strong oversight mechanism is put into place to ensure the project developers strictly adhere to them. In areas where human activities of expansion of area under agriculture and illegal tree felling have posed serious threats to wildlife species and other biodiversity resources, apart from strengthening protection measures and halting expansion into wildlife habitat, emphasis should be laid on building awareness on co-existence. The conservation of endangered species cannot be an isolated domain of wildlife experts, forest officials and other government stakeholders alone. A stronger policy initiative is needed to create space for equal participation among people, especially the residents of forest fringes and eco-sensitive zones of protected areas. Robust participation of people in conservation initiatives can be possible only when the awareness is built across all sections of the society, from students to elders. The conservation milestones highlight growing conservation leadership. Sustained participation among empowered communities is crucial to shaping the next generation's conservation of endangered species.